Friday, November 29, 2013

Today is my 22nd Anniversary with the Mister. Last year, here on the blog, I dedicated the whole month of November to our marriage with a five part series on lasting romance. If you missed it you can check it out by either clicking the button on the sidebar or go here for part one, two, three, four, and five.Several years ago, for our 10th anniversary in fact, we decided to renew our vows to one another and did so with a Renaissance themed wedding. Renaissance means rebirth so we thought it only fitting since we were celebrating the rebirth of our commitment to one another.Our invitations were copies of an illumination that I hand painted and then they were sealed with wax and hand delivered.

I designed and made my dress. It had three layers, the outer layer was a dupioni silk with hand beading, the inner layer was a silk velvet, and the chemise was a rayon. I spent hours working on this dress and was quite proud of how it turned out.

We incorporated many ancient traditions, such as a handfasting ceremony, moving the ring sequentially from the thumb to the middle finger, and being encompassed inside a circle made of our guests to symbolize our eternal love.

My mother and I made our cake to look like a castle. We decorated the Hall in a castle medieval theme and my sisters and daughter served as our serving wenches. My youngest sons served as our Knights. Our guests also came in costume so it was loads of fun to see what everyone put together.

So, in honor of our anniversary, I thought it would be fun to share some of the photos from the event with you.

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

What do you do with your over ripe bananas? Normally bananas get eaten pretty quickly at our house, but every once in a while we have a few that sit around and get overly ripe. When that happens, I like to make up a batch of banana bread. Here's a great recipe that you might like to try.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour the bottom and sides of a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan and set aside. In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In another bowl combine the mashed bananas, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla and then add the banana mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring as little as possible. Lightly fold in the nuts and chocolate just until combined and the batter is thick and chunky. (Do not over mix the batter, you do not want it smooth. Over mixing the batter will yield tough, rubbery bread.)

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until bread is golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 60 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool and then remove the bread from the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 1 – 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf of banana bread

When I was making this loaf I didn't have dark chocolate chips on hand so I threw in some white chocolate instead and I really like the taste that it gave the bread. You could mix up the types of nuts also, maybe use walnuts instead.

Monday, November 11, 2013

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, was declared between the Allied nations and Germany in the First World War, then known as "the Great War."

In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: "To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"

November 11th became a legal federal holiday in the United States in 1938 —a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as "Armistice Day." On June 1, 1954, in the aftermath of World War II and the Korean War, Armistice Day became Veterans Day, a holiday dedicated to American veterans of all wars.

So, today, on this Veteran's Day, take the time to thank a veteran for serving our country and protecting our freedoms.

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